California's Oroville Dam: Who is to blame for this near disaster?

Photo by Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images

A worker keeps an eye on water coming down the damaged main spillway of the Oroville Dam on February 14, 2017 in Oroville. More than 188,000 people were ordered to evacuate after a hole in the emergency spillway in the Oroville Dam threatened to flood the surrounding area.

A worker keeps an eye on water coming down the damaged main spillway of the Oroville Dam on February 14, 2017 in Oroville. More than 188,000 people were ordered to evacuate after a hole in the emergency spillway in the Oroville Dam threatened to flood the surrounding area. (Photo by Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images)

Oroville Dam episode points to short-sighted leadership

In another glaring example of politics overwhelming common sense, the entire Oroville Dam situation is disgusting.

We’re letting hundreds of millions of gallons of water (from Oroville and other filled Northern California dams) run into the ocean because of the short-sighted, politically influenced “leaders” who haven’t built new dams over the past 30 years despite our doubled population in California since 1980. How many families’ water needs would that have taken care of in the coming five years?

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I couldn't help but notice that Gov. Moonbeam reached out to the Trump administration for assistance with the Oroville Dam. What?

What happened to all the citizens of Lollipop Lands outrage and we are going to fight Trump at every turn, we don't need his administration or anything from D.C.

We are as big as many countries in the world, we'll take care of ourselves! Less than a month in office and our liberal leadership is crying for help from Uncle Donald. Lollipop Land spends all its money on illegal immigrants, welfare, environmental enforcement, outlandish state employee salaries and retirement packages. No money for the first disaster of the year? Pathetic.

Steven Quinn

North Park

Police are not at fault in the Alfred Olango shooting

This is a life-or-death decision that cops have to make in milliseconds and they are going to defend their lives. If anyone is going to die, it is going to be you. If society wants anyone to be cops, we must support their right to defend their lives.

The ultimate solution is, of course, to change our culture of violence so that such soul-searing decisions are no longer necessary.

Context would be needed to make those numbers meaningful. I don’t see how the writer’s conclusion that Nordstrom made a political decision is supported. It may reflect consumers’ spending decisions based on taste, price or politics.

Trump’s tweet is the problem. Sounds like a parent who argues with a professor if his child doesn’t receive the grade the parent wants. Many “wonderful” people are not able to make a living on their art or business idea. What parents would publicly threaten an individual who did not buy the painting, the book, or the shoes produced by their adult child?

And if that parent were a movie character using great power to get his way, he would be the villain.

Cindy Schuricht

La Mesa

It is time for the U.S. to walk away from Afghanistan

Regarding the U-T’s report on Afghanistan, we are now informed that the army theatre commander has asked for “a few thousand more troops.”

This new buildup is a sad commentary on the Afghan saga and it adds these “few thousand troops” to the 8,400 boots on the ground. Let’s not kid ourselves, there are many more noncombat troops there for logistic support.

What this new addition of troops really means is that Afghanistan cannot support the ongoing effort to get free of the stalemate. Now we understand that Russian intervention complicates the effort.

The many months of telling Americans that we will gradually draw down the effort and remove our troop support is not the truth and we should not be held to this overwhelming support for an effort that has all the earmarks of failure and the significant amount of money necessary for victory is just not a sensible and fiscally responsible effort.

Doesn’t that poison the water, kill fish and possibly make us sick? And, on top of this, the House backed a separate resolution doing away with extended background checks for gun purchases by some Social Security recipients with mental disabilities. So much for pro-life and physical safety.

Now, how about financial security: On Feb. 4, we read another directive Trump signed will effectively halt an Obama Labor Department rule that requires brokers to act in a client’s best interest rather than seek the highest profits for themselves when providing retirement advice. If they won’t be doing this any longer for retirees, how can anyone trust investment brokers?

I thought the “Apprentice” president claimed to represent all of the people.

Carole Lombardi

Del Cerro

Immigrants in the past had to make on their own

Ellis Island opened in 1892 and over time 12 million people immigrated into the United States. I don’t recall those immigrants getting assistance of any kind (history teachers please correct me if I’m wrong about this).

They had to work or fight for everything they got. I think this is one of the biggest differences in immigration today. Our government helps them in many ways that we do not for our own citizens. I understand why this rankles many U.S. citizens. I recall my mother telling my father one time, “you seem to care more about other people than you do your own family.”

Our immigration policy today seems similar.

Greg Pharis

Spring Valley

We have heard promises like Trump’s in the past

As an immigrant from Germany who came to this country in 1957 and whose father fought for Germany and whose mother who lived in Berlin throughout the war, I have a good prospective on someone who promises “Only I can fix it.”

Our current administration, with the Republicans sitting quietly on the sideline, are using the same techniques as in pre-war Germany. Find a group to blame for your economic problems, Mexicans. Create fear, Muslim terrorists. Use false facts, “alternative facts” and outright lies, discredit the media and any groups with opposing views.

When done well and your supporters follow you, no questions asked, we are doomed as a free country. What’s next after the Muslim ban, a Muslim registry and yellow crescent moon for Muslims to wear?

Art Schaefer

Chula Vista

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